


Let the Past Stay in the Past [DISCONTINUED]

by thepineapplehedgehog



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Awesome Shuri (Marvel), Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, F/M, Gen, How Do I Tag, Hydra Peter Parker, Loki and Shuri and Peter are prank masters, Lord help me now, Multi, Natasha Romanov is a mama spider, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Not Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Compliant, Not Spider-Man: Far From Home Compliant, Not Spider-Man: Homecoming Compliant, Peter Parker & Shuri Friendship, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Protective Natasha Romanov, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-09
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2020-11-28 03:09:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20959466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thepineapplehedgehog/pseuds/thepineapplehedgehog
Summary: The Avengers find a teenager named Peter in the middle of the woods, and they find out he's escaped from HYDRA. He grows close with Natasha and Clint, and of course Tony Stark.





	1. Chapter 1

"I've got him on the radar," Sam said as he flew over the forest. "He's running through the trees. Clint?" 

"I see him." Clint has his arrow knocked and he was sizing up the person running through the trees. The figure suddenly tripped and fell, and Clint released the arrow. He ran after it and towards the figure who was now sprawled on the ground and hopefully unconscious, thanks to the arrow. Clint had aimed for his arm, and the arrow held a sedative that would knock them out after it hit them and the Avengers would be able to put him in custody. It wouldn't kill them. 

Clint, Natasha, Sam, and Steve had been chasing someone who had attempted to shoot up a bank while Tony, Bruce, Thor, and Loki had been attempting to put out a fire and rescue citizens in an apartment building. Clint and his group had chased the criminal, who was armed with alien tech, out of the city and into the woods. 

Clint reached the figure and froze in shock. It was not the man they had been chasing, but instead a teenage boy he had never seen before. He was thin as a twig and had a sickly complexion. What was more, the arrow had not hit him; the boy had caught it a mere millisecond before it would've pierced his left arm. Clint only knew of one other person who had the reflexes to catch an arrow, and that person was Loki. 

The boy saw Clint and scrambled to his feet, dropping the arrow. Clint approached slowly, knowing that there should not be a child in the woods, especially one who looked this unhealthy. The boy's eyes were filled with fear and he was backing away. 

"It's okay," Clint said gently, "we're not going to hurt you. What's your name?" 

The boy shook his head profusely and continued to back away. Clint noticed that Steve had quietly approached the boy from behind, getting ready to grab him. They both knew that they needed to take the child back to the compound and find out who he was. Clint continued to talk to the boy so that he wouldn't notice Steve. 

"Why are you in the woods?" Just as Steve made a move to grab him, the boy back flipped over him and began frantically climbing up the nearest tree in an effort to get away from them. Unfortunately, that was the tree Natasha had perched herself in, and the sight of her freaked the poor kid out so much that he shrieked and fell out of the tree. There was a sickening CRACK when the boy's foot hit the ground. 

"Hey, kid, it's okay," Steve said. But the kid scrambled back up and ran into the trees, limping on his ankle as he did so. 

"Wait," Clint said as Steve started to go after him. "Sam, can you see where he's going?" 

"There a cave he just disappeared into about a mile out," Sam replied. "Dang, that kid's fast." 

"Clint, you aren't seriously thinking of leaving him out here," Steve protested. "He's just a kid!" 

"I'll go after him tomorrow," Clint said. "But I think we should give him some space today." 

"I agree with Clint." Natasha jumped down from the tree. "He looked really scared of us. I'll go with you tomorrow."

***

When they arrived back at the compound, they filled the others in on the situation. Thor and Loki had had to go back to Asgard for a while, but Tony and Bruce were both at the compound. 

"We're going to try and convince him to come back here with us," Natasha said. "He can't be out in the woods on his own, and it looks like he hasn't eaten in weeks." 

"He can stay here," Tony replied, "but he probably won't be able to stay forever. I mean, we have a lot of responsibilities, and we don't really have the time to take care of a teenager." 

"What if he stays here for a little bit, then stays at my house for a while?" Clint suggested. "I would have to talk to Laura about it, but I'm sure it would be fine." 

"That sounds like a good plan," Steve interjected, "but we don't even know if he'll let us take him in, or if he has any family. Let's wait until you guys talk to him before we go too in depth on a long-term plan." 

Everyone nodded in agreement. "Sam, could you send me the coordinates for that cave?" Clint asked. "I'll enter them into the Quinjet so we're ready to go tomorrow." Sam nodded. 

"All right," Natasha said. "We'll be ready."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint, Natasha, and the other Avengers get to meet Peter, and we get to see more of his backstory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've kind of decided that this is going to be a more about Nat and Tony's relationship with Peter, because I feel like Nat would be really great with Peter, and we all know that Tony would be a great parent :) 
> 
> Also there's going to be a little bit on Clint and Nat's friendship, because their friendship is really underrated, and I want to include that, so that'll hopefully be in here a little too.

The next morning, Clint and Natasha flew the Quinjet to a clearing in the woods that was not too far from the cave. They walked the rest of the way on foot. 

When they arrived, Clint stopped. "Maybe I should go in first," he said, "so we don't overwhelm him. You can stay right here so that if you hear anything bad happening, you can rush in and save me." 

Natasha grinned and agreed. 

Clint cautiously walked into the cave and was surprised at what he found. It appeared as if someone had been living there for a while. There was a fire pit in the center with a dented pot next to it. In the corner of the cave was a thin and tattered blanket and in the back was a small supply of food, but not enough to sustain anyone for at least a few days. 

"Hello?" he called out. "Is anyone here?" He looked around boulders to make sure the kid wasn't hiding behind them. It occurred to him that the kid might've deserted this place after they discovered him, but Clint figured that there was nowhere else for the kid to go. 

He turned around and started to walk out when he caught sight of a movement in the shadows above the entrance of the cave. His sharp eyes barely made out the outline of a kid, somehow perched between the ceiling and the wall, almost completely hidden in the shadows. 

"Hey," said Clint gently, so as not to startle him. "Why don't you come down and talk to me?" The boy didn't answer, so Clint decided to continue talking. "You really shouldn't be out here by yourself. What's your name?" Still no answer. "You wanna come with me? You could stay with-" 

"No!" Clint jumped as the kid's voice suddenly bounced off the walls. "No! You just want to make me into a weapon, just like the others! You look just like them. You're going to make me fight and kill for you! Well, I won't! Never again!" 

The familiar story gave Clint an idea, but Natasha was three steps ahead of him. She walked into the cave slowly, trying not to startle the kid. 

"My name is Natasha Romanov," she told him. "When I was very young, I was forced to become a Russian spy. I was forced to hurt innocent people and I even killed some of them. I helped the bad guys. Eventually, I grew old enough to realize that what I was doing was wrong, but they would threaten me and torture me unless I did everything they asked. They turned me into a weapon was I was just a little girl." 

The boy was starting to inch his way out of the shadows. 

"Eventually, Clint here was sent to kill me. But he didn't only see me as a weapon. He saw me for who I was: a scared girl, tired of fighting. Someone who wanted a second chance. He protected me and helped me turn myself around. Is that close to what happened to you?" 

The kid was almost fully out of the shadows. He nodded, and when he spoke, his voice was quieter, as if he was reflecting on terrible memories. "Only I didn't have anyone to help me. I had to escape by myself." His voice shook. "I just don't want to be that way anymore. But I'm scared they're going to find me." 

Natasha nodded, remembering how scared she was when Clint first helped her. "I get it. But you need to trust us. We'll protect you. Will you come down?" 

He slowly climbed to the cave floor. Clint noticed that he was favoring his right ankle, which looked slightly broken. "What's your name?" Clint asked. 

"Peter." 

"Do you want to come with us?" Natasha said. "We could help you start over, and maybe take a look at that ankle." 

Peter nodded and they led him out of the cave. 

***

On board the Quinjet, Natasha was examining Peter's ankle. There was a look of amazement on her face. "Peter, your ankle... it's almost completely healed," she said. "Is that even possible?" 

He pulled his ankle away from her. "Yes. It's possible. Please believe me." There was a layer of fear behind his voice. 

Natasha felt nothing but sympathy for him; she suspected she knew what was going on. "Do you want to talk about it?" He shook his head. "Okay. Just know that I am always here if you ever do want to talk." He said nothing. "Anyway, I don't think that we really need to do anything with your ankle. At this rate, it should be healed in the next few hours. If it's not, we can talk to Bruce back at the compound." Peter still said nothing and would no longer meet her eyes. Natasha squeezed his hand reassuringly then went to the cockpit to talk to Clint. 

"Did he stop talking?" he asked her. 

Natasha nodded. "But it'll take time. You remember how I was. I suspect he'll have certain triggers that'll cause him to stop talking or panic, but we can help him get through it. How long until we reach the compound?" 

"Less than ten minutes. When we get back, I'll talk to Bruce about a check-up for Peter. It's pretty obvious that he's undernourished, but I want to make sure that there isn't anything else that we need to know about." 

"I'll show him around and introduce him to the others, then," Natasha added. "Then maybe I'll try and get some food in him, but it might take a little time for him to trust us. You know it did for me." 

Clint nodded. "Why don't you go sit with him? Even if he doesn't talk, I know you liked it when someone was around." She agreed and walked back to Peter, sitting down next to him. The rest of the ride was silent. 

***

When the arrived back at the compound, Natasha led Peter into the building. Clint had already went off to find Bruce. 

"FRIDAY?" said Natasha. "Could you tell me where everyone is?" 

"Tony, Sam, and Steve are in Tony's lab," replied the AI's voice. "And Bruce is in his lab with Clint." 

"Thanks." 

"Who's Steve?" Peter asked quietly as they walked. 

"He's one of our friends," Natasha said. "He's also known as Captain America." 

"Was he born in 1918?" 

Natasha stopped walking and looked at Peter, surprised. "Yeah, I think so. Why?" 

"I think I knew his friend" was Peter's short reply. Natasha tried to inquire more, but Peter had gone silent again. She sighed inwardly, knowing that this is how she was when Clint first found her and that she had to be patient. Still, it was a little frustrating, especially when Peter just dropped a bomb like that and didn't elaborate. 

They walked into the elevator and Natasha told FRIDAY to take them to Tony's lab. While they were waiting to reach their floor, Natasha noticed that Peter was no longer favoring his ankle, which she took as a good sign. 

The doors opened, and Natasha led Peter down the hall. She knocked on the door to Tony's lab and let herself in. Tony was showing Sam and Steve something at one of the tables. 

"Hello?" she said. "You guys want to meet someone?" 

When she looked down at Peter, she almost didn't believe what she saw. His face was in awe and, for the first time since she had met him, full of life. 

"Oh my gosh, is that an arc reactor?" he said excitedly, looking at one lying on a table. "I had heard that those were a thing but I wasn't sure, but oh that is so insanely cool! Did you build it? You'd have to be really smart to understand that kind of-" He seemed to realize that he was rambling and stopped talking, his cheeks turning red. 

Natasha smiled and made a mental note of his reaction to Tony's lab. "Yes, to answer your question, that _is_ an arc reactor. And I'm sure Tony would love to talk to you about it. You seem really smart." __

_ _

_ _Peter blushed. "Th-thanks." _ _

_ _

_ _"Hey, Nat? Remind me later, I want to talk to you about something," Tony said from across the room. He, too, was impressed with Peter's knowledge of his gadgets, and wanted to talk to her about his abilities. _ _

_ _

_ _She nodded. Her phone started ringing, and she put it to her ear. "Hello?" _ _

_ _

_ _"Hey, Tasha," came Clint's tinny voice from the other end. "SHIELD found out faster than we thought. We need to go over there and cover it up. But Bruce is ready for Peter whenever... could you maybe drop him off here?" _ _

_ _

_ _"No, I don't want to leave him by himself... I send him and Tony over. I'll meet you at the front." She ended the call. "Change of plans. Clint and I are going to SHIELD headquarters to try and cover this up for a while. Tony, you need to take Peter over to Bruce; he's going to see if there's anything we need to worry about." She turned to Peter. "Is that okay, Peter? I can take you later if you want, but it might be easier to do it now." _ _

_ _

_ _Peter hesitated, then nodded. Natasha stood up. "All right then. I'm going to go with Clint. Call me if you need anything." And with that, she left the room and Tony led Peter to Bruce's lab. _ _

_ _

_ _***_ _

_ _

_ _"Take a deep breath for me," instructed Bruce. "And let it out. Good." _ _

_ _

_ _Peter was sitting on a table. Bruce was doing a full check-up on him, and so far, nothing seemed to be wrong other than the fact that he was thoroughly undernourished. _ _

_ _

_ _"Everything seems fine," Bruce told him. "And you seem to have an amazing healing factor, too. Would it be all right if I drew some blood? I'd love to study some of the cells." _ _

_ _

_ _Bruce turned around and starting entering information into his computer. Tony noticed that Peter had started to fidget uncomfortably when Bruce mentioned drawing blood, but he said nothing. Tony went over to Peter. _ _

_ _

_ _"Hey, buddy, you know you can say no, right?" he said quietly. "If you're not comfortable with something, you don't have to do it. It's okay to say no." Peter looked at Tony, a question in his eyes. Tony nodded encouragingly. _ _

_ _

_ _"I- uh- I'd rather you didn't," Peter said shakily. "D- draw blood, I mean." _ _

_ _

_ _Bruce shrugged. "Okay. In that case, all I want you to do is eat something, but not too much or not too rich of something. Maybe try some dry cereal to start with, just to make sure you don't overload your stomach." _ _

_ _

_ _Peter visibly relaxed and nodded. "O- okay. Thanks." _ _

_ _

_ _"Don't mention it. If you ever need anything, or just want someone to talk to, just know that I'm always here." _ _

_ _

_ _Peter nodded again. Maybe things weren't going to be so bad after all._ _

_ _

_ _***_ _

_ _

_ _"Ms. Romanov, Mr. Barton, we know you have the child," one of the SHIELD agents said. "We know he's dangerous. Director Fury wants him taken into our custody as soon as possible."_ _

_ _

_ _"I have no idea what you're talking about," Clint told her. "All we know is we chased him into the woods, and then he was gone!" _ _

_ _

_ _"If we find him, you'll be the first to know," Natasha assured her. "Our first priority is public safety. Now, if you'll excuse us, I think that Tony might be trying to cook dinner tonight, and I'd rather come home to a standing compound instead of a burnt down one. I'll talk to Fury as soon as possible." _ _

_ _

_ _With that, Natasha and Clint left the astounded agent standing in the middle of the lobby. Once they were a safe distance away from the headquarters, they looked at each other and burst out laughing. _ _

_ _

_ _"Oh my gosh," Clint gasped once he could catch his breath, "did you see the look on her face? That was priceless!" _ _

_ _

_ _Natasha wiped a tear from her eye. "And you could tell that she was ready to start yelling at us!" She managed to calm herself down. "I haven't laughed like that in a really long time." _ _

_ _

_ _"Me either. I miss it." _ _

_ _

_ _"Well, with all this saving the world crap getting in the way of us hanging out... we haven't had much time together." Natasha looked at Clint. "I wish we did." _ _

_ _

_ _"Well, hopefully we'll get more time together now." He smiled. "Now let's get back and see how Peter's doing." _ _

_ _

_ _***_ _

_ _

_ _"You sure do have an appetite," Tony laughed as he watched Peter wolf down his bowl of cereal. "When's the last time you ate, kid?" _ _

_ _

_ _Peter shrugged. "Four days? A week?" He was starting to get a little more comfortable with Tony after spending the afternoon with him. "S- so I have a question..." _ _

_ _

_ _"Shoot." _ _

_ _

_ _"A- are you _actually_ Iron Man?" ___ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Tony grinned. "Yeah, I'm Iron Man. I thought you were living in the woods. How would you know about me?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Okay, for starters, I _do_ hear things, even in the woods," Peter replied. "And second, HYDRA literally hated you with a passion. They'd make us listen to rants on why you were always ruining their plans and saving everybody." He looked shyly at his hands. "You were kind of what kept me going, in a way. The hope that maybe one day, you'd come in and rescue me." ___ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Kid, I... I wish I could've," Tony said. "I had no idea what was going on. If I had known, it would've been at the top of my list of 'things I need to save next'." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Peter said nothing, just ate more cereal. He had gone silent again. But it was progress, Tony thought. Progress. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"We're back!" announced Clint loudly while Natasha entered the room dramatically, waving her arms and sliding across the floor. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Well you two are in a good mood," Tony said, raising an eyebrow as they burst into laughter again. "What are you, five?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Sorry," Natasha said, "we've just had a pretty good afternoon, lying to SHIELD agents and watching them squirm. So, you know, the usual." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Tony turned to Peter, who had reacted with a small smile. "Clint and Nat here have been best friends since they met. Apparently, they've suddenly decided to have fun again." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Anyway, how'd it go with Bruce?" Clint asked. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Great. Peter just needs to work his way back up to a normal diet and otherwise, he should be good. How'd it go at SHIELD? Besides lying to them and watching them squirm." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Good. Fury says he knows we have Peter, but I think we threw him off the scent, for at least a little bit. If Fury finds out about Peter, he's going to take him into custody at SHIELD, and I'm not going to let that happen." Natasha crossed her arms. "If Fury even gets near Peter, he's going to have to answer to me." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Clint shook his head. "Anyway, I have a little bit of work to do, and I need to call Laura about something. I'll be in my bedroom if anyone needs me." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Hey, Peter," Tony said, "how'd you like to see my lab? I've got some pretty neat stuff in there and you seem to understand a lot about that sort of thing." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Peter nodded. "I- I'd like that." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"In that case, I'll leave you two to it," Natasha said. "I have some stuff to work on, and I think Thor and Loki might be coming to visit in a few days, and someone needs to organize that. I'll see you later, then." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _***_ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Well, kid, welcome to my office," Tony said, opening his arms grandly as he led Peter into his lab. "This is where the magic happens." Looking back, he saw Peter looking around excitedly at all the advanced tech. "You wanna see some of my suits?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Really?" Peter's eyes were as wide as dinner plates. "I'd love to! Oh my gosh, this is like one of the coolest things to happen to me!" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Tony laughed as he watched Peter bounce up and down with excitement. "FRIDAY, show me Mark 97." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Opening Mark 97." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _They watched as a panel of the wall slid open to reveal a shiny red and gold suit of armor. Peter scanned it, noticing something. "It's damaged," he said, gesturing to the thrusters. "See how the frames are busted and out of shape?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Yeah," Tony said, impressed. "I'm surprised you noticed that. It's such as small detail, I almost didn't when they first broke. I can't figure out how to replace them, though, and it's been driving me crazy." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Have you tried using stronger material?" Peter ran his fingers along the thrusters. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Yeah. I have the new frames built, I just don't know how to get them into place." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Maybe take the entire thrusters apart and then put them back together with the new frames." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"That- that might actually work," Tony said. "How did I not think of that?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"It looks like you were trying to just take the frame itself apart and then replace it, which would have worked, only with the way the frames are bent, it prevents them from being able to be taken out as they are." Peter shrugged. "It's easy to miss." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Tony nodded. "Yeah, but it's even harder to notice. You're pretty smart, kid. I'd love for you to work with me in here some days, if you'd like." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Peter opened his mouth to respond, but he was cut off. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Hey, Tony? Pizza's here." Steve poked his head into the lab. "Hey, Peter. How are you doing?" Peter said nothing. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Quiet again_, Tony thought. _I'll talk to Tasha later_. ____ _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _***_ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _During dinner, Clint and Natasha filled the team in on their work from that day. So much had happened, it was hard to believe that Peter had only come to the compound that morning. Peter said nothing throughout the meal, just listened intently; but he scarfed down pizza like it was his last meal on earth. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Laura said she was fine if we ever needed Peter to go to the farm, but I think he's fine here for now. And I don't think we'd have enough food at the farm," Clint said jokingly. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Everyone laughed, except Peter, who blushed as he bit into his third piece of pizza. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Thor and Loki are scheduled to come visit in two days," Natasha said. "They were ready to visit tomorrow, but I figured we should let Peter get used to our weirdness before we pile Asgardians on top of it." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Tony nodded. "Sounds like a very productive day, then. Pepper's flying in early tomorrow morning, and I'm planning on meeting her at the airport." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"All right then. Sounds good. I'll do dishes, so take your plates to the sink." Sam grabbed the empty pizza boxes and his dirty plate. "Then I am going to go for a run." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"It's 7:00 at night," Steve said. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Yeah, and I have nothing better to do," Same replied. "I'd invite you to join me, but I don't really feel like hearing 'On your left!' for the entire night." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Steve laughed. "Yeah, that sounds about right. In that case, I'm going to work out downstairs. I'll see you guys later." He took his plate to the sink and walked towards the elevator. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"I'm going to join him," Clint said, following Steve. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Sam sighed. "And he didn't clear his plate off." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Natasha laughed. "Hey, Peter, why don't we show you your room? Then you might want to take a shower and get some rest. I know it's been a long day, for you of all people." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Peter nodded and Tony and Natasha led him up to where the rooms were located. "My room is on the next floor," Tony said, "and Natasha's in two doors down from yours." He gestured to the door he was talking about. "If you need anything, not matter what time it is, I'm pretty much always awake." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"And I'm a light sleeper, so if you ever need anything and I'm asleep, feel free to wake me up," Natasha added._ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"I left some of my t-shirts in your drawers, and there should be some pants too. And the bathroom's stocked with towels and washcloths, so just jump in whenever." Tony opened the door. "Again, if you need anything, any of us are available any time of day. Or night." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"O- ok," Peter said. "I- I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then. Good night."_ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"'Night, Peter!" Peter disappeared into his bedroom, closing the door behind him. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"I'll have FRIDAY give me updates," Tony told Natasha when they were alone. "But I've been meaning to talk to you about him." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Let's go somewhere else." They went into the parlor, which had soft red furniture and a sleek grand piano in the corner. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Okay, so I've noticed that Peter is smart. Like, _really_ smart," Tony said. "Have you seen the way he lights up when he starts talking about science and technology? It's like it brings him to life or something. And he knows what he's talking about. I'm really starting to wonder where he came from." ___

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Natasha nodded. "Yeah, but we can't push it. He'll open up when he's ready. We have to be patient." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"I know, but it's a little frustrating, you know? Like, he's so intelligent. Eventually, I think he should go to school." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Maybe, but not for a while. I can tell that people make him really nervous. He hasn't really talked to anybody here except me, you, and Clint." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Tony sighed. "This is harder than I thought it would be. Waiting for him to open up, I mean." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"It's just going to take a while. In the mean time, we have to be there for whatever he needs," Natasha said. "That's what happened with me. And Peter's actually opening up a lot faster than I did. For a while, I would only talk to Clint, and only when we were alone." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Tony nodded. "Anything else I should do to help him?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Natasha bit her lip. "I have no idea whether or not this is the same way for Peter, but with me? Maybe it sounds weird, but it helped when people used my name. It kind of gives a sense of self, if that makes sense. When I was a spy, the leaders always called me by a number or a cruel nickname. When people called me by my actual name, it gave me a sense of identity." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"All right, I'll keep that in mind," Tony replied. "Thanks." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Natasha yawned and nodded. "No problem. Now, it's been a long day, and I'm exhausted. I'm going to bed. Good night." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"'Night, Tasha." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _***_ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _There was a small, quiet knock on Natasha's door at about three thirty in the morning. She awoke immediately and rose to get it. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Peter?" He looked so small, standing there in the hall with a blanket hugged around him. "What's wrong?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"I- uh, I had a- a nightmare," Peter said quietly. "I was just wondering if I could talk to you- you know what, never mind. I'll just- I'll go back to bed-" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"No, come on in," Natasha replied, ushering Peter inside. "FRIDAY, lights 30%." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _The lights came on, dimmed, and Peter sat down onto one of the couches in her room. She came over to Peter a few minutes later with a steaming mug in her hand. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"W- what's this?" Peter asked as she handed it to him. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Hot chocolate." Natasha grinned. "I have a microwave and a mini-fridge in here. Don't tell anyone." She settled herself next to him. "So what's up?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"I- um, I had a dream about- about HYDRA," Peter said shakily. "I just- I just thought that maybe if I talked to someone about what happened there, maybe the nightmares would get better. I dunno. Is that dumb?" _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"No, of course not! You know, I used to have nightmares all the time. It was kind of nice to get them off my chest every once in a while." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Okay... so I guess I should start at the beginning... When I was about 10, HYDRA found out about me and my... powers, I guess? And they figured they could use me, so they kidnapped me. The first couple years were mainly experiments and tests to see what I could do. They'd throw me off buildings to see if I could fly- which I can't, by the way- and they'd starve me to see how long I could go without eating." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Natasha was horrified. _ _ _

_ _ _ "It was the worst when they found out about my healing factor. They'd break my bones and cut me just to see how fast I'd heal. Most of the time, it wasn't very fast, because I was almost always hungry. And then when I didn't heal fast enough, they'd punish me even more." Natasha was having flashbacks to when she was a little girl, the way they'd treat her when she didn't behave. _ _ _

_ _ _"Then they brainwashed me, and that's when I started as an assassin. Have you ever heard of the Winter Soldier?" She nodded. "I knew him. He was really nice. He helped take care of me at night. And then they took him and brainwashed him too. Now whenever someone says a certain sequence of words, we're forced to do what they tell us. It's- it's hard. Really, really hard, especially when I h- have to w- watch m- myself k- kill someone-" He started crying. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _Natasha squeezed his hand reassuringly. "Hey, it's okay," she said gently. "It's not your fault. It's HYDRA's. And we're gonna help you get away from all that and start over. Sound good?" He nodded. He continued to cry for a little more, then calmed down and finished his hot chocolate. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Do you want to camp out in here for tonight?" Natasha asked him. He nodded. "All right, let me find you some pillows and another blanket. You can crash on this couch here." _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Good night, Natasha," Peter said once he had situated himself. _ _ _

_ _ _ _

_ _ _"Good night, Peter," Natasha replied._ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, this ended up being a lot longer than I expected, but that's good! Sorry if the formatting's a little weird, I was having some issues with it but I think I fixed everything... if not then I'm sorry
> 
> Also: I'd like to thank my friend Emma for helping me with part of this chapter and with an idea for the next one! :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day starts out with a certain Winter Soldier attacking the compound. What will Pepper say when she sees Peter? And how will Peter react to the Winter Soldier?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I know this was a day late, but I had a lot of homework yesterday and I wasn't home this weekend. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! 
> 
> Trigger warnings: minor blood and gunshot wounds

"FRIDAY, what's going on?" Tony yelled over the noise, bolting up in his bed. He had finally managed to fall asleep, only to be woken by a blaring alarm and flashing red lights. 

"There is an intruder on the top floor attempting to to breach the rest of the building," the AI replied. "The building is going on lock down and all inhabitants are encouraged to enter the safe room on the first floor." 

"On screen," Tony ordered, getting out of bed and throwing on a t-shirt. "Where are the others?" 

"They are making their way to the safe room." The TV screen lit up with footage of a man with a metal arm attempting to break in through a door on the top floor. The door was denting more and more each time he hit it. "I've strengthened the windows and the doors, but he appears to be stronger than the barricades. I recommend getting to the safe room immediately." 

"I'm getting there." He grabbed his phone from his night table and ran to the hall. Opting to take the stairs instead of the elevator, he reached the floor where the others slept. There he found Natasha and Peter arguing in the hall. 

"What are you guys doing?" he asked them, incredulous. "Get to the safe room!" 

"I have to get up there!" Peter countered, not showing any signs of shyness or hesitation, which surprised Tony. "I'm the only one who's strong enough to fight him! Even if we do get to the safe room, he'll find us. I need to stop him before he gets there!" 

"You don't even know who he is!" 

"It's Bucky." Steve emerged from one of the bedrooms. "FRIDAY showed me the footage. It's definitely him. I need to see him." 

"No." Peter shook his head. "Well, yes, but still no. Right now, he's the Winter Soldier, and he's extremely dangerous. No one will be able to match him unless they're from HYRDA, and seeing as none of you are, it has to be me." 

"We're not just going to let you go fight a super soldier by yourself!" Natasha cried. 

"Why not? It's not like I haven't done it before!" Steve, Tony, and Natasha realized the meaning behind that and fell silent. "Are we all in agreement then?" Peter asked, taking the silence as an opportunity. "Great. I'll see you guys soon." 

"Okay, you're crazy if you think we're letting you go alone," Tony said, finally relenting. "I, for one, am going with you, and you can't stop me." 

"So am I," Natasha said. "And I'm assuming Steve is going, too, because he just left." 

They turned to see Steve disappearing into the stairwell. Before anyone could say anything, Peter was quickly following. 

"That went well," Natasha sighed. "Come on." 

They reached the top floor to see a fight was already well under way. Peter and Cap were throwing Cap's shield back and forth at the Winter Soldier, until he intercepted it and the shield clattered the the floor, useless. 

"Kid, you take the left and I'll take the ri-" Cap was cut off when a gunshot sounded and he collapsed to the ground, clutching his arm where the bullet had hit. Natasha and Tony ran to help him. 

With Cap out of the way, the Winter Soldier began shooting at Peter. Tony cried out, but Peter dodged and ducked and flipped to avoid the flying bullets; and miraculously, not a single one hit him. 

He punched the HYDRA agent in the gut with more force than should be possible for a fourteen-year-old kid, and the gun was knocked out of his hands. Peter fought with the expert skill of someone who had been training for years. 

The Winter Soldier shoved Peter to the ground, but Peter pulled him down as well and they wrestled on the ground. They each had a bloody nose and a busted lip, and Peter definitely would have a black eye later, but he was still going strong. 

Then the Winter Soldier managed to grab Peter and fling him across the room and into one of the windows, which shattered from the force upon impact. Peter would've fallen out of the window, had Tony not reacted quickly and caught him, hauling Peter back into the room. 

"Grab the gun, Peter!" Natasha called out. She was attempting to stop the blood flow from the bullet wound in Steve's arm. "Quickly!" 

Peter lunged for the gun that now lay abandoned on the ground. He pointed it at the Winter Soldier. But instead of shooting, he hesitated. He knew that James Buchanan Barnes was in there somewhere, and he couldn't bring himself to harm him- not after everything he had done for Peter in the last few years. 

"Bucky!" he said, keeping the gun raised for backup. He knew it was false hope, but he had to try and bring him back before he shot him. "Bucky, it's me, Peter! Remember how you used to tell me stories about you and Steve? And how you comforted me after all the times I was tortured by HYDRA?" 

It hurt everyone's heart to hear that a fourteen-year-old child had been tortured before, but they had to hope that this was going to work. 

"You are an escaped HYDRA soldier," the Winter Soldier said, emotionless. "You are my mission. I am to return you to HYDRA- dead or alive. And I have no qualms about killing you." He raised a second gun he had brought. 

"Come on," Peter complained. His hands were shaking around the gun, but he still held it up. "Please don't make me do this, Bucky!" 

They stood frozen for a moment. Then the Winter Soldier broke the silence. 

"Who's Bucky?" The Winter Soldier fired his gun. Peter shot his own and dodged the bullet coming for him. The other man wasn't so lucky; his leg buckled as the bullet pierced it. He was unable to get off the ground. Peter finally fell to the ground, physically and emotionally drained. 

"Where are you hurt?" Tony asked frantically, coming over and checking Peter for injuries. "Where's the blood coming from?" 

"I- it's not mine," Peter said shakily. "I- I hurt him." 

"Buddy, that's okay," Tony reassured him gently. "He was trying to kill you." 

"But I was tr- trying to get away from hurting people!" Peter was full-on crying now and rocking back and forth on the floor. "A- And I used my training against him and I hurt him-" 

"Hey, hey," Tony said quietly. "Peter, it's okay. It's okay to use your skills. You'll never fully forget them. And they can help you do good, too." He pointed to Natasha, who was wrapping Steve's arm tightly in a piece of fabric. "Look at Tasha. She learned how to dress wounds and splint broken bones when she was training to be a spy. Now, she can use those skills to help others. And any assassin training she got she now uses on bad guys in order to protect the good guys. So it's okay to not want to be connected to your past, but it's also okay to remember them and use them for good instead." 

Peter nodded, still crying, but not as profusely. Natasha came over with Steve. "Steve needs to get to the MedBay," she told them. "And I think Peter would do well with going there too." 

Tony helped him up and Natasha went back over to where the Winter Soldier still lay. She pulled him off the ground and helped him limp down the stairs. Even if he wasn't good at the moment, he still couldn't walk, and they needed him in a secure facility until they could figure out how to get HYDRA out of his head. 

***

After visiting MedBay and getting Peter some ice for his black eye, Tony took Peter to his lab while Natasha stayed with Bucky and Steve got his arm patched up. When Peter walked into the lab, his face lite up, but it was a little less excited than normal and he didn't immediately start talking rapid fire like he usually did. In fact, he didn't say anything. He quietly tinkered with some of the equipment Tony let him use, but he didn't talk to Tony, even when Tony kept asking him questions. Tony eventually gave up, realizing that Peter was probably quiet from what happened that morning. 

"Sir, Pepper Potts is coming up towards your lab," FRIDAY said, breaking the silence that had settled in the room. "She seems distraught." 

"Oh, crap!" cried Tony. "I totally forgot! I was supposed to meet her at the airport!" Right on cue, Pepper burst through the lab door. 

"Tony, what's going on? Who's hurt? Where is-" She stopped when she noticed Peter with his black eye sitting in the lab. "Oh. Well. Hello." 

Peter said nothing, so Tony introduced them. "Pepper, this is Peter. Peter, this is my girlfriend, Pepper." 

Peter did a small wave, which was about all the reaction Pepper was going to get. "Hi Peter," she said. She turned to Tony when Peter didn't say anything. "Where were you this morning? I thought something terrible had happened." 

"FRIDAY, pull up footage of this morning," Tony said. They watched as a video of the fight with the Winter Soldier ensued. Pepper gasped, speechless. "So, yeah, I was a little busy." 

"Oh my gosh! Peter, you fought him by yourself? Tony, did you make him do that?" Pepper demanded, coming over and hugging Peter protectively. She had no idea why there was a teenager at the compound, but she already felt protective of him. 

"No, no, I swear!" Tony said quickly. "I tried to stop him!" 

"Well, I'm assuming no one ate before that," Pepper said. "Have you fed Peter after he was fighting a super soldier?" Tony looked down sheepishly. "Tony!" 

"What? I never eat, and I just... forgot?" 

"You forgot to feed the kid you've taken in." Pepper shook her head. "Peter, sweetie, let's go find you some breakfast, yeah?" 

Peter nodded and followed Pepper to the kitchen. 

***

Later, when the Winter Soldier was in custody and Steve was resting, Natasha came into the kitchen to see Peter wolfing down french toast that Pepper had made. Peter agreed (without speaking) to spend the rest of the day with Natasha, so after he was finished eating, the two decided to go for a walk in the park. When they were gone, Pepper and Tony cleaned up. 

"So where did he come from?" Pepper asked. 

"We found him living in a cave in the woods," Tony replied. "He had escaped from HYDRA. According to Nat, he'd been there for four years; they kidnapped he when he was ten." 

"You adopted an escaped HYDRA agent?" Pepper repeated, incredulous. 

"Well, to be fair, we didn't know he was from HYDRA at first," Tony said. "We just saw an underfed teenager living by himself in the woods and figured that maybe something was going on." He shrugged. "Clint and Natasha went to go get him, and we took him in." 

"And _why_ did you think you could take care of a child?" 

"The original plan was to take care of him for a little bit and then he would go to live with Clint and Laura on their farm. But when we found out that he was a HYDRA agent, we also found out that he has a minor sort of post-traumatic stress, and we really didn't want him on his own for a while." Tony started the dishwasher. "Certain things make him stop talking for periods of time, and he doesn't really open up to anyone but Natasha. So we figured that it would be best for him to stay here." 

"That's exactly the right thing to do," Pepper said approvingly, "but have you gotten him new clothes? Have you remembered to feed him?" 

"Food: yes, clothes: kind of? We haven't had a chance to go shopping, but I've lent him some of my old t-shirts and pants. They seemed to fit him fine, and today we were a little preoccupied with fighting a super soldier to think about clothes shopping." 

"Is that why he wouldn't talk to me?" 

Tony nodded. "Bucky was in the same HYDRA facility as Peter, and when Peter fought him today, it brought back the memories from his past. He thought that using his training to defend himself meant that he was still a bad person. I tried to explain it to him, and Nat probably is, too." 

"Okay... it sounds like you've actually made some mature decisions today and yesterday," Pepper said, impressed. "In that case, I think I'll go find him some clothes today. I don't have any work to do until tomorrow, so I might as well. I'll see you later." 

***

In the park, Natasha and Peter were walking in the brisk fall air. Tony had lent him a jacket. They were watching the children run and play on one of the playgrounds. 

"Why does it hurt to remember?" Peter asked suddenly. 

"To remember your past?" Peter nodded. "Because you don't want to be a part of it anymore. You want to completely wipe away any memory of those times, but you can't, because they're a part of you, and there's not much you can do about it." Natasha squeezed his hand. "But I've found that it helps to embrace it and use it for good. Tony's probably told you this a thousand times, but it's true. And it's okay if you're not ready for that yet, because it's going to take time. And Tony and I and the rest of the Avengers will always be there for you if you need us." 

Peter nodded again. "I know." There was a stretch of silence again. "Natasha, what happens if HYDRA comes for me again, but they brainwash me again?" 

Natasha was confused. "What do you mean?" 

"Well, they brainwashed Bucky. When they use a certain series of words, they trigger the brainwash and he is forced to do what they want. It's the same for me. What happens if they use my triggers and turn me against everyone?" 

"Well," Natasha said slowly, "we've been working with Wakanda for a way to get HYDRA out of Bucky's head. If we figure it out, we could do it on you, if you want. But, for the time being, I'm willing to bet that very few people know your trigger words, and we background check every person that comes in and out of the compound. If it is even possible that they might know your trigger words, we'll keep them away from you." 

"Thanks." Peter smiled, a real smile, for the first time all day. 

"Okay. My turn for a question, but feel free not to answer it if you don't want to," Natasha said. "Why do you only talk to me and not anyone else?" 

"Because-" Peter hesitated. 

"It's okay if you don't want to answer."

"No, no, it's fine. I guess it's because you were one of the first ones to find me, so when I got here, you were one of the two people I knew. And you had a relatable backstory, so it was easier for me to not be afraid you would judge me, I guess. Not that I thought anyone else would judge me," he added quickly, "but you get what I'm trying to say." 

She nodded. "Yeah, I get it. Those are pretty much the same reasons that I would only talk to Clint when I was younger." They sat in comfortable silence again for a while. "Peter, how would you feel if we enrolled you in a school? Not right away, of course, but eventually. You're very smart, and I think it would be good for you to help you make some friends." 

Peter's eyes had gotten wide and he looked scared. "Um, I guess?" 

"It's okay to say no," Natasha said gently. "And I think we should wait for a while anyway. I just meant that if you wanted that, I wanted to know earlier, because it's going to take some time to get you enrolled in a school that matches your level of intelligence and to find out what classes you should take. Just let me know when you're ready, _if_ you're ready, that'd be something we could do for you. In case you couldn't tell, we can pull some strings, seeing as we're the Avengers and all," she joked. 

Peter laughed. "Okay. I don't think I'm quite ready yet, but I'll definitely let you know when. And- and thanks for being here for me," he added quietly. "It's nice to have some people who care." 

Natasha hugged him. "I know, Peter. Now, what do you say we go back to the compound and get some lunch?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm super excited because I finally figured out how to do italics! Yay! :)
> 
> Edit: I had to change the story line a little because I accidentally made it conflict with itself, so hopefully it's fine now


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter gets to meet some other fun characters, and they may get into some mischief... but if you can't prove it, you didn't do it, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All right, so it turns out I can't update on a schedule... sorry about that. But here's chapter 4. I promise I will try and post more often, but this was sort of a filler chapter that I needed to get through, so I hope you guys like it!

Peter awoke late the next morning, and was surprised that he had slept the whole night without any nightmares. Sure, this was only his second night, but he had expected to wake up for at least a few nights afterward. But after yesterday was so crazy, he supposed that he was just too tired to have nightmares. 

He looked at the clock and saw that it was already 10:00. His first instinct was to rush downstairs and apologize for sleeping so late, but then he realized that if they had expected him to be awake, they would've come and woken him up. He was starting to figure out that these people were nice and didn't expect a whole lot from him; they just wanted him to be happy and comfortable around people, and he was starting to accept that. It was taking a while, but he was once again getting used to the way the world worked. 

Throwing on a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants that he found in his drawers, Peter walked downstairs to the smell of something delicious coming from the kitchen. 

"Look who's finally up!" Steve said cheerfully as he flipped the pancakes that he was making. "Did you sleep well?" 

Peter nodded, then said hesitantly, "Yeah. What are you making?" It was the first time he had spoke directly to Steve, and it wasn't as scary as Peter had made himself believe. _Maybe_, he thought, _I should try talking to the others, too_. 

"My famous buttermilk pancakes," Steve replied, taking note of the fact that Peter seemed much more at ease that day than the previous one. "And we've got fruit, syrup, and chocolate chips to put on top if you want." 

"It smells really good," Peter said more confidently, taking a seat at the island. "Um, do you know where Natasha or Tony is?" 

"They're at the airport to welcome King T'Challa of Wakanda and his sister, Princess Shuri. They're coming to see if they can figure out how to get HYDRA out of Bucky's head. Wakanda is super technologically advanced, so if anyone can do it, it's them." He noticed Peter pale slightly at the mention of a king and princess coming to the compound and laughed. "Don't worry. T'Challa and Shuri are super laid-back, so don't worry about being formal or anything like that." Steve pushed a stack of pancakes in front of Peter. "And now you should eat some breakfast or I think Pepper might kill me." 

Peter laughed a began to eat the delicious breakfast. 

***

"Welcome to the Avengers Compound!" Tony said grandly as he, Natasha, Shuri, and T'Challa arrived at the building. "I'll get you guys through security, and later I'll have your high-access passes made. But for now-" he flashed his access badge at the security guard "-let's head upstairs." 

Once they were in the elevator, Tony remember something. "Hey, FRIDAY, is Peter awake yet?" 

"Yes, sir," FRIDAY replied evenly. "Peter is awake and eating breakfast. He appears to be in a conversation with Captain Rogers." 

Tony raised his eyebrows in surprise and looked at Natasha. "I hope this means he's starting to open up to other people a little bit. It'd be nice if he would talk to other people. FRI, take us to that floor, please." 

"Who's Peter?" Shuri asked, curious. 

"He's a new resident of the compound," Natasha replied. "I'll explain more later. But I was hoping, once we introduce you two, that you might hang out with him today? He needs to start hanging out with people his age, and I think that you two will get along like a house on fire." 

"That does not mean that you can burn the house down," T'Challa added quickly. "No house fires. Not again." 

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Shuri said innocently. Everyone laughed. 

"I wouldn't mention anything about HYDRA, though," Tony said. "Maybe you two could work on something in my lab. Peter is really smart and full of ideas; I think he just needs someone who's just as passionate about it as he is." 

Natasha leaned down and stage whispered, "And between us, it's okay to get into some mischief today. He needs to learn that it's okay to step outside of his comfort zone sometimes." 

Shuri grinned evilly. T'Challa sighed like a tired dad. 

"And here we are!" Tony said as the elevator doors opened. 

***

Peter looked up as the elevator door opened. He saw Tony and Natasha, along with two other people: a girl about his age and an older man who was older than him but younger than Tony; maybe he was about Natasha's age? He realized that they must be King T'Challa and Princess Shuri. 

"Good morning!" Natasha said cheerfully as she entered the kitchen. "Did you sleep well last night?" She didn't add the obvious question on whether or not he had nightmares. 

"Yup! It was the first full night of sleep I've had in a long time." 

"That's really good," Tony said, happy that Peter was settling in. He'd only been there for two days, but already Tony was incredibly fond of him. "This is Shuri and T'Challa from Wakanda. T'Challa is going to help me with some things, and I was wondering if you and Shuri wanted to work in my land for a while. You're free to do anything, just try not to cause any extreme damage." 

Peter's eyes had gone wide. "You mean I can build something?" Tony nodded, and Peter smiled, his eyes filling with glee. "Ohmygosh, thank you so much! I haven't been able to build anything in years, and I've been practically bursting with ideas since I've got here!" 

"I'm glad you're excited. And if you need anything, just ask FRIDAY and she can take care of it- or notify me, whichever is necessary." 

Shuri walked over to Peter, grinning. "I have so many ideas. We're going to have lots of fun!" Shuri's maniacal voice made Peter slightly nervous, but he was too excited to dwell on it much. And he was even more excited to get to hang out with someone his age; it would be the first time in nearly four years. 

"Sir, it appears that Thor and Loki have arrived," said FRIDAY. "They are currently on the helipad of the compound." 

"Right, I'd forgotten that they were coming today," Tony said distractedly. "Well, just tell them to come down here and we'll do introductions. They can get settled in today as well." 

"I already have." Loki came through the wall, startling everyone. 

"Loki, we've talked about this," Tony said exasperatedly. "You can't just walk through the walls while you're here! And FRIDAY said you were on the landing pad?" He ended the last part in a question. 

"Oh, well I suppose I am," Loki said thoughtfully. He snapped his fingers. "There, now I'm not. I've found great pleasure in duplicating myself and freaking Thor out. It makes him quite angry." 

As if on cue, Thor entered the room. Or rather, _stormed into_ the room would be more accurate. 

"Loki!" he roared. "You continue to torment me with your mischief!" 

"Yes." Loki nodded. "Yes I do. It's quite fun!" 

"Anyway," Natasha interrupted, "we have some work to do, in case you haven't forgotten. Thor, Loki, we'd love to have your input on this situation if you're willing to give it. Regardless, we do need to get started." 

"If it's all the same to you, I think I'll stay out of that particular conversation," Loki told her. 

"All right, then let's get going," Tony said and he, T'Challa, Natasha, Thor, and Steve (who had been standing at the sink washing the dishes) left the kitchen. 

Once they were gone, Loki rubbed his hands together. "And now the fun begins." 

***

"Are you sure this is okay?" Peter asked tentatively. "Your brother won't get mad at us?" 

"Of course he'll be mad," Shuri said, "but that's half the fun!" 

"You see, little apprentice," Loki said, "playing pranks is a way to make people angry at you in a funny way, but they won't be angry with you forever, so you can continue to prank them over and over again!" 

The trio was in the process of covering the floor of T'Challa's bedroom with plastic cups half-filled with water. Shuri and Loki had convinced Peter to help them with their mission: to play as many pranks as possible in the time that the others were in their meeting.

"We're almost finished," Loki announced. "Just a few more." Loki had been finishing the room after Shuri and Peter had been forced out of the room due to lack of space.

The entire floor was completely covered, with no space to walk in. Shuri grinned wickedly. "This'll be fun later. What's next on our list?" she asked as Loki stepped out of the room and closed the door, which they had left enough space for. That way, T'Challa would open the door, completely unsuspecting, and either a) knock over a bunch and ignite the domino effect or b) be totally unable to get out of the doorway and into the room. Loki and Shuri had given Peter many lectures telling him that he was to play innocent if any of their pranks were traced back to them, and that was very likely.

"Next up is 'cover all of the conference rooms in sticky notes'," Peter said after quickly consulting the slip of paper in his hand. He had been unsure of whether they should have evidence, but Shuri assured him that they would burn it afterward. "How are we going to get that many sticky notes? I mean, to cover _every single_ conference room- except the one they are in- with sticky notes will takes thousands, if not _millions_ of them." 

"I have many duplicates of myself out getting them for us," Loki informed him. "Of course, they are disguised as people who can get massive amounts of sticky notes for free. When they are back, they will be the ones doing the hard work, but of course we will get all the credit." 

"In the meantime, we reach our third and final prank," Shuri said, snatching the list out of Peter's hand. "Sticking everyone's shoes to the outside of the building. We'll have to develop some sort of sticky solution in order to do that, but lucky for us, we have two chemistry geniuses in our little group." 

Peter and Loki looked at each other. "Who?" 

Shuri rolled her eyes. "Well, for starters, me. And Peter." 

Peter's eyes widened. "Me? How do you know I'm good at chemistry?" 

"You just kind of have a sort of _vibe_ coming off you." Shuri shrugged. "Aren't I right?" 

Peter nodded. "I was in advanced chemistry and there was talk about moving me up a few grades in that class, but then HYDRA took me, so... that obviously didn't happen." 

An awkward silence followed, but Peter was surprised to realize that he didn't feel very uncomfortable mentioning HYDRA. Normally, he'd freeze up and get really nervous, but he felt completely fine. _Maybe all I needed were some friends_, Peter thought. 

"Anyway," he told them, breaking the silence, "how were you guys planning sticking the shoes onto the building?" 

"I told you," Shuri said, "we're going to develop-" 

"No, I don't mean that," Peter interrupted. "I mean how are you going to get the shoes and the sticky stuff onto the building itself? Are you going to use a ladder or something?" 

Shuri and Loki looked at each other. "I guess we could just stick them next to the windows," Loki said glumly. "But then they'll be able to reach them." 

Peter grinned. "Lucky for you, you are in the presence of someone who can stick to walls and ceilings!" 

The others gaped. "You can do _what?!_" 

Peter turned to the wall and started to climb it using only his hands and feet. He wasn't using any handholds either- not that there were any. It was a blank wall. 

"Duuuuuuude," Shuri breathed. "Do you know how many more pranks we are now capable of? You have, like, opened the floodgates of ideas in my brain! This is so cool!" She eyed him thoughtfully. "What other things can you do?" 

Peter counted off on his fingers. "I'm really strong, have really good reflexes, and I also have a sort of 'sixth sense', so to speak, where I can sense when something bad is about to happen. Plus, you know, the sticking to walls thing." 

"So you're basically a human spider?" 

He thought for a moment. "Yeah, I guess so... can spiders detect danger?" 

Shuri nodded. "They have little hairs on them that warn them. I like to call it a spider sense." 

"Okay, hold on," Loki exclaimed. "I am confused on multiple different levels, but here is my biggest question: what is a spider?"

Shuri and Peter gaped at him. "You don't know what a spider is?" Peter asked in disbelief. 

"I live on Asgard!" Loki protested. 

"And you've been to Earth how many times now?" Shuri asked. 

"Okay, but in my defense, I was caught up in some sort of war pretty much every one of those times," Loki said. "I didn't really have a lot of time to go learning about the strange mechanisms of your world." 

"Suuuuuuuuure." 

"A spider," Peter jumped in, "is an eight-legged bug that lots of people are scared of. They're like creepy-crawler sorts of things. They can climb walls and ceilings, they're pretty strong and agile, and, like we mentioned earlier, they have a spider sense." He got an idea. "Hey, FRIDAY, can you pull up a picture of a spider?" 

The AI did so, and Loki shrank back in horror at the images of the spindly-legged creatures. "Remind me never to be in the presence of a spider," he said. Shuri and Peter laughed. 

"I think we should get back to our prank," Peter said, and the three of them got to work. 

***

"All right, I think that sums everything up," Tony concluded. "I now declare this meeting dismissed." 

"I'm going to go downstairs to the training room and spar for a while if anyone wants to join me," Steve said. 

"I'll go," Natasha offered. "Just let me go change first." 

She walked to her room and changed into her training clothes, then looked for a pair of tennis shoes to put on. "Huh," she said when she couldn't find them. "That's odd." She couldn't find any of her other shoes, either. 

Walking back down to the conference room, Natasha saw Steve talking to Tony. "I can't find a single pair of my shoes!" he was saying. 

"I can't either," Natasha jumped in. "And I know they were all in my room this morning." 

"FRI, can you tell where they are?" Tony asked. 

"Sir, they appear to be... _on_ the building." 

"On screen," Tony ordered as the three looked at each other with confused expressions. 

The screen lit up with an image of the outside of the building. What seemed like every pair of shoes in the compound was stuck to the outside of the building, spelling out the words HA-HA. 

The room was silent for a moment. "Well, you've gotta hand it to them, they're creative," Tony said. "How on earth did they get them up there?" 

"Who?" Steve asked. 

"Shuri, Peter, and Loki," Natasha explained. "It wouldn't have been anyone else." 

"FRIDAY, what else have they done?" 

The screen lit up with images of brightly-colored rooms. 

"Are those-?" 

"The conference rooms," Tony confirmed. "Covered in sticky notes. Wow. They're dedicated." 

"They have also filled King T'Challa's room with cups filled with water," FRIDAY informed them. 

"Well, you can't deny it's been a busy day," Natasha said, smiling. "Maybe this means that Peter's finally gotten comfortable here." 

***

At dinner, Peter was very talkative and friendly. He chattered on and on with everyone there and not once did he show signs of reservedness. Tony smiled inwardly at the sight, not realizing that Natasha and Clint were doing the same.

After dinner had been put away and everyone had retreated to their rooms for the night (T'Challa had been forced to get rid of all the water cups, and needless to say, he was _not_ happy about it) and Tony had gone to his lab, Peter knocked on Natasha's door. 

"Peter!" she said when she answered it. "What's up?" 

"I know yesterday you said that you'd help me get into a school once I'm ready," Peter said hesitantly. "And I... I think I might be ready to try it." He had realized that it was fun to interact with other kids his age, and he had decided that he was going to try school. 

"That's so exciting, Peter!" Natasha exclaimed, smiling. "I'm really proud of you." She wrapped him in a hug. "We can talk about this more in the morning, okay? I'm really happy for you. Good night, Peter." 

"Good night, Nat."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyway, that's the chapter! Please leave comments, I love hearing from people. I also really like constructive criticism, but please don't be mean about it!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, this is really late and kind of a filler, but here you go!

Peter shifted nervously in the hard office chair. The school office was hot and stuffy and definitely _not_ helping his anxiety. He felt a hand on his leg and looked up at Tony. 

"You okay, bud?" Tony asked. 

"I'm fine," Peter responded, "just really nervous, I guess." 

"You'll be fine," Nat assured him, coming over to them from the desk. The secretary looked astonished to have two of the Avengers in her office. "The principal will be with us in a minute." 

"I know you're nervous, Peter," Tony said, "but you're going to do great here. You're super smart and friendly, and you're going to meet a bunch of new people." 

"I guess," Peter said uncertainly. "But... what if I freeze up? Or something triggers me?" 

"I'll tell you what," Natasha said. "Why don't we start with a week, and if you really don't like it, we'll talk. Sound good?" 

Peter thought for a moment, then nodded. "Okay."

"Ms. Romanoff, Mr. Stark, Principal Morita will see you now," said the secretary. 

"Ready, Peter?" Tony said, standing up. 

Peter hesitated for a split second and then nodded. 

***

Inside the principal's office, everyone introduced themselves and sat around the principal's desk. Unlike the secretary, the principal didn't seem at all fazed about have Natasha and Tony in his office--or at least he didn't show it if he was. 

"Hello," the principal said. "You must be Peter. I'm Principal Morita." 

"Hi," Peter said. 

"Ms. Romanoff and Mr. Stark have informed me about your situation," Principal Morita continued. "You're about the age of a sophomore, so we're going to put you into that class. I've looked into your past school records, and you seemed to have done very well in school, particularly in the science department. I'm guessing that you'll be put into some advanced classes, but just to be sure, there will be a placement test that you will need to take. That will be administered at your home in the next couple weeks." 

Peter nodded. The principal's easygoing manner was starting to ease his nerves a bit. Just then, someone knocked on the door and the secretary poked her head inside the office. "Sir," she said, "Ned Leeds is here." 

"Ah, yes, send him in," Principal Morita said. 

A boy who appeared to be Filipino walked in at the principal's request. "You asked to see m--" The boy--Ned?--froze as he registered who was in the office. 

"Ned, this is Peter," the principal said, filling the silence. "I was hoping you would show him around the school a little bit while I speak with Mr. Stark and Ms. Romanoff." 

Ned recovered quickly. "Of course."

Peter stood up and silently followed Ned out the door. Even though Peter was silent, Ned had lots to say. 

"Down here are the math and English rooms. The gym's at the other end of the hall and to the right, and the cafeteria is down the hall and to the left. Science, foreign language, and FACS are on the top two floors." Ned led him down the hall, pointing out other various parts of the school. "Dude, I am so jealous that you get to live with the freaking _Avengers_. That's like the coolest thing ever! Have you seriously met them all?" 

Peter nodded. "Most of them, I think. I'm not really sure how many there are." 

"That's _awesome_," Ned sighed. "I wish I could meet Captain America. Oh, and here's the library!" 

***

About an hour later, Peter, Tony, and Natasha left Midtown High. "What did you think, Peter?" Natasha asked as they drove away. "Did you like it?" 

"I did," Peter responded. "Ned was super nice and we met this girl named MJ who was kinda grumpy but also really nice. And Ned talked a bunch about the school and how we would be in some of the same classes and how he would help me catch up with some stuff if I needed help." 

"It sounds like it's going to be good for you," Tony said. "Principal Morita said that he'll be sending us the placement test in the next couple weeks so that you can start as soon as possible. In the meantime, you're welcome to have Ned or anyone over any time you like." 

The silence that followed was surprising. Peter didn't respond, just looked out the window. Tony looked at Natasha questioningly, but she shook her head as a response. "I'll talk to him later," she said quietly, not realizing Peter could hear her.

***

A few hours later, Peter heard a knock at his bedroom door and heard Natasha's voice. "Come in," he said. 

She entered the room and closed the door behind her. "Hey, Peter," she said. "I just wanted to make sure you were all right. I know it was a lot today." 

"I guess," Peter responded, sounding unsure of himself. "I don't know. I feel like I'm opening up to people really fast. Like, _too_ fast. I'm just not sure if this is how I'm supposed to be acting after--you know, everything." 

Natasha took a deep breath and sat down beside him on his bed. "So here's the thing, Peter. Everyone's different, and everyone's unique in their own way. And I know that sounds kind of cheesy, but it's true. The way I react to a situation is not going to be the exact way that you or Tony or anyone else would react to that same situation. So there's no real right or wrong way to 'act' after a traumatic experience like this." 

"Okay, but does this seem normal?" Peter pressed. 

Natasha pursed her lips. "I'll admit, this is the fastest rate I've seen anyone jump back into everyday life after something as horrific as what you've gone through. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. It could just mean that you're adjusting faster than we thought you would. And yeah, you'll still probably have triggers every now and then, even as you continue to grow farther and farther away from this experience. I know I still do. But you'll learn to deal with them, and we'll all be here to help you." 

"Am I going to have panic attacks a lot?" 

"At the beginning, most likely," Natasha replied honestly. She noticed that Peter looked very anxious and nervous about that. "But again, we're going to be here to help you the whole time. And most, if not all, of us have gone through some sort of traumatic something or other. You've got a family here, Peter. And don't be afraid to come to us about anything." Peter nodded, though he still looked uncertain. Natasha stood up, deciding to switch gears. "Why don't we go eat dinner? Steve made spaghetti, and you haven't _lived_ until you've had Captain America's spaghetti. And besides, food makes everything better. Also, tonight's your first movie night!" 

Peter smiled slightly and stood up, following her downstairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as I said before, it's been a really long time since I last posted... sorry. But I felt like I needed to address certain things, and Peter's opening up really fast was one of them. I hope I explained it better, and I really hope to get the story moving as soon as I can. 
> 
> Thanks to everyone who reads this! Please feel free to leave comments and constructive criticism, but please be nice :)


	6. Author’s Update

This is just an update that I’m putting on all of my in-progress fics~

First, I want to start off by saying that I hope you’re all staying safe! This is some difficult stuff that we’re going through, and it’s important that everyone takes the right steps to get through it (I.e. staying inside, washing hands, etc.) 

As I am stuck at home, I have a lot of time to get some writing done! I hope to get a lot of it done by the time this is all over. 

That being said, I will most likely not be updating for a while. During this time, I will not have access to my computer (I’m writing this from my phone!) and I don’t want to write full chapters from this tiny little keyboard. As I said before, though, hopefully I will have a lot of writing done by the time I regain my computer and I will be able to post a lot! It’s just going to be a while. I’m really sorry if some of you were waiting.

Again, I hope everyone does everything they can to stay safe. Thank you so much to anyone here who is in the medical field or anyone who works at grocery stores and other jobs that are deemed necessary to stay open. I wish you all well throughout this time and I hope to update as soon as possible!


	7. Another Author's Update (Uggghhhh)

Uuuuugggggghhhhhh okay here it is

I am having really bad writer's block on this. I had most of it planned out when I first started it, but then a bunch of stuff came up in my life and because I don't ever write anything down, I forgot all of it. 

I don't think that I am giving up on this. I just need some time to figure out where I'm going with this and what's going to happen next. I'm so sorry, but I hope I can continue it soon.

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to give constructive criticism in the comments, but please be kind, as I am kind of self-conscious when it comes to showing people my writing :)


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